WATERLOO - Dozens of friends and family gathered in downtown Waterloo Sunday afternoon to protest the police shooting of Eric Rule, a man they described as a gentle giant and loving father.

Rule, 31, a father of two, died in the driveway of his home at 611 Keystone St. early Saturday. Police said they had been called to a domestic dispute. Eye-witnesses and police said a struggle ensued with Rule - who was more than 6 feet tall and 260 pounds ­- and an officer shot him in the chest.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating the matter. The two officers on the call, who have not been identified, have been placed on administrative leave.

The state medical examiner's office has ruled the case a homicide. DCI said the classification means Rule died at the hands of another person, and does not place any criminal intent for the act.

Rule's friends and family said the officers did not have a legitimate reason to shoot him and can't understand how he ended up killed.

"They shot an unarmed man twice in the chest," said his wife, Bethany, who witnessed the shooting.

Bethany and her mother, Shelley Shimp, described Eric as a loving and dedicated father who never laid a hand on his wife or children. They said his record had been clean since 2004 because marriage and fatherhood changed him.

Shimp called Eric "the best thing that every happened to my daughter." She said Eric was by Bethany's side every step of the way after their oldest daughter was born prematurely at 2 pounds.

The daughter, 4, cried so hard she vomited when she found out her dad was dead, Shimp said.

"I just want the truth to be out about what he's like as a man, not what he did as a kid," Shimp said.

Eric's youngest brother, Kevin Harris, 18, called him his role model because he was the only of his brothers who seemed to have a plan for his life.

When Eric was a teenager, he bought Harris a pair of Nike tennis shoes with his first paycheck, Harris said.

"When I was younger he was never home, because he was always working," he said.

Eric's mother, Becky Daugherty, said his stepfather died in a car accident when he was 14. From then on, Eric helped look after his younger siblings, and worked long hours to help make ends meet, she said.

"That's just the kind of guy he was. He saw a need and filled it," she said.

Aaron Westphal, Eric's co-worker at Martinson Construction, said Eric started at an entry-level position more than 10 years ago and worked himself up to field engineer.

Westphal said Eric always showed up for work early and often stayed late. He turned himself into a crucial member of the company because of his hard work and dedication, he said.

"He even went into work on his wife's birthday because they needed him," he said. "It's going to take a huge person to fill his spot."